Variety Declares VHS Dead

An anonymous reader writes "Variety has written an obituary for the VHS format only 3 years after it was surpassed in popularity by the DVD." While VHS is hardly the format of choice these days, there are still many, many home movies and other favorite recordings and commercial releases floating around in VHS. How long until VHS players themselves go the way of the 8-track player?

Comments

hey, wait a minute!

[yagu]

From the /. summary:

How long until VHS players themselves go the way of the 8-track player?

Did I miss the memo? Is there some danger around the 8-track and availability. Please... ... ... click

... ..., someone tell me this isn't so! Have I invested all this money on all these artists and their tapes... ... ...click

for naught? Sigh.

Re:hey, wait a minute!

[kabz]

What is this infernal light I see before me?

Will no-one rid me of this flashing clock?

the real question

[User 956]

How long until VHS players themselves go the way of the 8-track player?

With the cost of storage plummeting and the rise of digital distribution and on-demand services, the real question should be: "How long until physical distribution of media goes the way of the 8-track player?"

Re:the real question

[Da_Weasel]

VHS has been dead for at least 5 years. I distinctly remember having to explain the totally foreign concept of rewinding a tape so you could watch it again to my oldest daughter when she was almost 6 (5 years ago). After she finally understood why the tape retained it's state she simply replied "That's dumb!". I heard the VCR gasp, then it reached for its chest, and collapsed to the ground clinching its heart in its hand. It's clock flashed twelve faster. I leaned closer to hear what the VCR was mouthing to me. "B be be kind, rewind..." And then it's clock flashed no more...

Re:More like the cassette than 8-track.

[LiquidCoooled]

Taping with the DVD recorder does not feel as "safe" as with VHS.
We have a recorder here and often I wonder if the old model was better designed for the task.
It was rare a tape just broke.
Sure, it would get slowly grainy and you could basically get one final watch out of them.
The DVDs suck because one error can fuck up the entire show.

I hope NTL hurry up and bring out a PVR.

The real answer

[NineNine]

It'll happen when broadband becomes as ubiquitous and as reliable as electricity. We have a loooong way to go before that happens.

VHS is still alive and well in our house.

[pixelguru]

My daughter figured out how to play the VHS tape of her choice when she was about 14 months old. The process was simple - just jam a durable tape into the big slot, and kick back and watch some Baby Einstein. If the tape won't go in, press the little eject button, remove the old tape and try again. Piece of cake!

6 months later, she's still working on DVDs. Getting one out of the package is a challenge in itself, and the discs must be handled gently with clean hands (usually we can manage one of those at a time). She knows which button opens the tray, but she's still working on getting the disc centered in the tray, and right side up. The tray is flimsy, and she's almost ripped it off at least once. Even if she gets a disc into the player, she still has to deal with the DVD menu interface or at least press the play button at the appropriate time. This whole process is far from toddler-friendly, but she is determined to figure it out, and I'm willing to let her keep trying as long as she's supervised.

She's fast though, and last week, before I could stop her, she jammed a DVD into the VCR with great satisfaction after getting frustrated trying to get it to play. For the record, a DVD will fit fully into a VCR, and it took me 10 minutes and a pair of needle nose pliers to get it out.